Recife - Clearance
See Brazil Formalities for full details on clearing into and out of Brazil.
Follow the clearance procedures as soon as possible, as the marinas will have faxed the “Capitania” to inform them of your arrival. Checking in is straight forward and an easy walk from the center of old Recife.
Domestic Clearance
Checking in and out with the Policia Federal is necessary for every port.
International Clearance
From the water taxi dock, follow the main road with the river on your right-hand side, walk past a large stone Lion statue [8°03’28.4″S – 34°52’10.4″W].
- Immigration (Policia Federal)
The road bends left and a security fence starts on your right-hand side. Follow the fence to the security gate, show your passport to the guard and ask for the Federal Police. Their offices along with Customs are inside the security area. The guard will radio the Federal Police, and someone will lead you around the corner to the actual office. It is slow, but a free, easy and friendly process. - Customs (Receita Federas)
Retrace your steps back past the lion towards the center of town. Customs is at 8°03’16.5″S 34°52’05.0″W. - Port Captain (Capitania Dos Portos)
On your right hand side, one street back is the big impressive yellow government building for the Capitania Dos Portos. Report here for the final part of the check-in.
Clearing out
Simply follow the clearing in procedure in reverse order.
There are no fees for clearance.
Last updated: May 2020
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Related to following destinations: Brazil, Eastern coast (north of Rio de Janeiro), Recife
Port Navigation
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RECIFE CABANGA BOAT CLUB
We are currently in the Cabanga boat club. It’s a tad tricky to get down the the club. Can only be done at high tide. There is a team on hand to guide you into the club and assist to tie up. Mooring is done stern too and it’s a stressful episode as it’s a very tight fit. The club offers clean showers, two lovely restuarts, pool and kiddies pool, bbq facilities. Staff are super friendly. We have not ventured into town yet but will fill you all in in due course.
Posted on behalf of Barry Flintoft
Pernambuco Yacht Club no longer seems to exist. There is no electric power or water and the office and bar are empty buildings. The pontoon is still there with some catamarans and shallow draft yachts. It is possible to anchor next to the jetty in 9m mud. We found the holding fine. This does put you in the heart of the city with a short dingy ride across the river into Old Recife.
The only problem is that there is nowhere to safely leave your dinghy. We paid a local water taxi guy to move it out of the way and keep an eye on it. The other alternative is to take the dinghy to the old yacht club and walk along the sea wall back towards the entrance, where at the big monument, you can get a ferry across. Neither option worked out cheap for us, try to establish a reasonable cost upfront and only pay for one way at a time.
Do not engage the services of the local “Yacht Specialist” Fabio. Despite his promises to the contrary, he could not get our gas bottles filled and cost us a fortune in taxi fares. He wanted to rip us off supplying water and diesel and incorrectly insisted we needed to go to the airport to clear in.
About: “Checking in with the Policia Federal is only necessary when entering or leaving the country.”
I understand that here there is an error of interpretation, this rule should be referred to the customs, where it is mandatory to process in the first and last port of Brazil, without exceeding the term granted by the sailboat visa.
The federal police must be visited in each port that is reached, as well as on their departure.
On the other hand it should be added that the beaches of Recife are at risk of shark attacks, about two attacks per year since there are records. Many of the public beaches have nets to prevent the arrival of sharks. Therefore, isolated beaches are not recommended and swimming in open waters.
The works in the port of Suape and its impact on the ecosystem are suspected of having changed the eating habits of sharks.